The Ultimate Thrill...

[IceDragon]

For sport or safety, hurtling to Earth from space without the protective shroud of a heavily engineered space vehicle seems like sheer lunacy—a hellish descent punctuated by intense heat and terminal, well . . . splatter. But believe it or not, the physics actually works out. With a heat-resistant space suit and the right kind of chutes, such a daredevil plunge should indeed be possible. And with the right people involved, it edges into the realm of the probable.

 

Two veterans of the space industry are working to make the idea real. While the rest of today’s space-bound private enterprises—Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic, XCOR Aerospace, Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin—are fixated on getting humans to space, a company called Orbital Outfitters is working on an innovative way of bringing them back, whether it’s done purely as a sport or as an emergency backup plan in case things go awry. Rick Tumlinson, a longtime civilian space booster who founded the Space Frontier Foundation and helped launch the X Prize Foundation, and Jonathan Clark, a former NASA flight surgeon who has a unique understanding of the extremes of spaceflight survival—his wife, astronaut Laurel Clark, perished in the space shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003—have begun to develop the equipment needed to return you from the heavens without a vehicle.

 

 

Together, the two plan to demonstrate a record-breaking 120,000-foot jump by 2009, and the truly unprecedented 60-mile space dive within two years—an audacious timetable. If all goes well, they’ll reach even higher. “Our ultimate goal,” Tumlinson says, “is to have individual human beings return from orbit alive.” That’s a drop from 150 miles—or more—involving increased heat and near-deadly Gs, essentially turning their divers into human meteorites.

 

Even that’s survivable, says NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory engineer Robert Manning, who designs reentry systems for unmanned craft. Given the right protection—including thermal protection, oxygen, an aerodynamic heat shield and a control system—Manning says, a human being could, theoretically, fall to Earth from any height and survive. The question is whether Tumlinson and Clark can turn theory into fact, and whether anybody would be crazy enough to give their thrill ride a try.

 

reference: http://www.popsci.com/popsci/aviationspace/3c082d2daa463110vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html

 

 

 

Would you give this a go?

[Disney Dood]

I'd crap my spacesuit, but I might try it if I took Calms Forte right before.

[Scaparri]

The day they actually pull that off, I'll be out in a boat in a lake, deep within some brush with my shotty, waiting to shoot down some good ham and bacon.

 

2009? I find that really hard to believe. It just blows my mind what we waste our money on...

[riccoaster]

I would do it only if it works.

[bulldogmom]

That sounds like craziness. I'll pass.

There's a difference between "thrill" and "torture".

[America Sings Freak]

I am not sure whether or not I would actually do it; I think I would decide after I hear tales from survivors!

[DejaVu4Life]

Not a chance. Being afraid of heights, I wouldn't even think about a regular jump....And yet I love flying. Go figure.

 

I would like to go up in to space if it ever becomes affordable.

[socalMAN123]

The thrill would just about kill me. Even if I'm super crazy, I'm not crazy enough to do this! I don't know who is...

---Brent

[pete4winds]

Would I be up for something like this? In a freakin' heartbeat!

[the sound]

I definately would not be doing that. You'd be nuts! Science isn't that advanced yet.

[waterviper]

With all the mishaps that has happened in the past in dealing with space travel I am sure something will go wrong with this. I am not being negative I am just being practical.

[Nrthwnd]

I am having enough trouble keeping my balance here on terra (not so) firma, heh heh.

 

Don't need to take that away from me with a space jog, hmmm'k?

 

[USRoadTripper]

Where's the "HELL NO!" option in the poll?

 

-Julie

[Elaine]

Arghhhh, no way D:

 

I'll go on any coaster or ride, but this is just asking to die. :/

[CoasterNut17]

I might do this if they perfect it. I have never been skydiving before, and what a perfect way to start! It's like an Intamin drop tower, exept it's 150 miles of freefall!

[krazekiddd]

Ok so if this is tested and I see enough people go and survive, I'd do this for sure! I've been skydiving before so I'd probably do this if its safe. I mean there is always risk with anything we do, but I'd be up for it.

[Freefallbestrideever]

Where do i sign-up? Now i don't have to make a trip to Cedar Point.

[californiascreamer1]

I wouldn't do it.

 

it doesnt look/sound safe enough to even try.

[doublex98]

Id never do it...way to risky not safe enough...

[texashorns82492]

Never. I'd possibly watch the POV though.

[coasterfreak101]

Somehow, my family gets PopSci every month for free, so I read this a little while ago.

 

I asked my mother what guarantees that you'll fall to Earth, because there's no gravity in space...she agreed, and asked me what's to keep you from landing on Uranus.

 

She got a kick out of that one.